TREASURY

Cash Machines (Low-Income Areas)

Edward Balls: Following the March 2005 Treasury Committee report on Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) charging, the Treasury invited the Chairman of the Treasury Committee, my right hon. Friend the Member for West Dunbartonshire (John McFall), to chair a Working Group on ATMs including banks, independent ATM operators and consumer groups to take forward work on key issues. The Working Group published a report on 13 December 2006.
	The Working Group announced an agreement to provide over 600 new free cash machines across 1,707 target low-income areas that it identified as lacking convenient access to these machines. To achieve this, a market-based financial incentive—known as a "financial inclusion premium"—would be introduced, to encourage ATM operators to place or retain free ATMs in deprived areas. The Working Group also agreed to implement improved transparency rules for charging cash machines.
	The Government are pleased to report that, just six months since the publication of this report, industry has made excellent progress towards the goal of placing over 600 non-charging machines in low-income areas across the UK, with more than 1 million individuals on low incomes standing to benefit.
	As of 15 June 2007, sites for 471 of the 600 new ATMs required have been successfully identified. Of these, 127 new free machines are already issuing cash to the public, with a further 344 confirmed ATM sites under contract to have a free ATM installed, most of them before the end of this year.
	The "financial inclusion premium" was introduced on 1 March 2007. Operators of the 127 newly live cash machines are already receiving this premium from cardholders' banks and building societies. In addition, a further 100 ATMs that existed prior to the Working Group announcement are also benefiting from this premium, given their special status as the "last ATM in town".
	Banks, building societies and independent ATM operators have all contributed new free-to-use cash machines, with independent ATM operators having provided or in the process of supplying 41 per cent. of the confirmed new non-charging ATMs. The UK ATM network, LINK, is continuing to work with its member banks and ATM operators to identify suitable sites in the remaining target areas, co-ordinating with Members of Parliament, local authorities, consumer councils and landlords.
	This work is already having an important effect on financial inclusion, particularly on the ability of low-income customers to access and manage their accounts. According to data from LINK, the new free ATMs in operation are enabling over 260,000 residents in the target low-income areas to access cash more conveniently. A further 822,000 residents in deprived areas will stand to benefit from the confirmed additional ATMs that are being supplied all across the UK over the coming months.
	For all cash machines that do charge users, operators are continuing work on signage to make it absolutely clear that a charge will be applied when withdrawing cash, so customers can see at a glance whether a machine is free or charging.
	The Government are encouraged by the concrete progress achieved, and would like to take this opportunity to thank all those involved in extending free access to cash to those who need it the most. Today my right hon. Friend the Member for West Dunbartonshire and I have written to all MPs thanking them for their support and urging them to continue to identify sites for the remaining 129 free cash machines. The Government look forward to a further update from the industry on its work to deliver against the ATM Working Group recommendations before the end of this year.
	Full details about the progress made are available on the LINK internet website at:
	http://www.link.co.uk/atm/access_to_cash_progress/index.html

Gift Aid

Stephen Timms: Today HM Treasury has published documents launching a consultation on "Gift Aid". The launch of the consultation starts a process of engagement with the charity sector that will include regional and national events and discussion with a wide range of charities. The consultation was announced at the Budget, and the Treasury expects to report on progress before the end of the year. Copies of the consultation documents are available in the Library of the House.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Home Loss Payments

Meg Munn: Following the annual review, on 26 June the Secretary of State will lay regulations to update the home loss payment thresholds in section 30 of the Land Compensation Act 1973 (as amended). Home loss payments are paid at a rate of 10 per cent. of the market value to owner-occupiers who are displaced from their homes as a result of compulsory purchase or certain housing orders. These are subject to maximum and minimum payments. Tenants receive a flat rate equal to the minimum payment to owner-occupiers.
	With effect from 1 September 2007 the maximum payment to owner-occupiers displaced from their home will be increased from £40,000 to £44,000 and the minimum payment will be increased from £4,000 to £4,400. The flat-rate will be increased from £4,000 to £4,400.
	The period of two months between laying the regulations and commencement will give acquiring authorities reasonable notice to revise their budgets for compensation. This is similar to the notice period given in previous years for revisions to the home loss payments thresholds.

Housing

Ruth Kelly: I am today publishing two consultation documents.
	The document "Delivering Housing and Regeneration: Communities England and the Future of Social Housing Regulation" outlines proposals to create a new housing and regeneration agency, Communities England, and also responds to Professor Cave's review of social housing regulation.
	At the end of last year I asked Professor Martin Cave, Director of the Centre for Management under Regulation at Warwick Business School to carry out a review of social housing regulation, the first for 30 years. Professor Cave's report, "Every Tenant Matters", is published today. The Government's initial response to Professor Cave's report is also published today, and forms part of "Delivering Housing and Regeneration: Communities England and the Future of Social Housing".
	The consultation document outlines:
	the delivery functions that are proposed to transfer to Communities England from central Government, and also the proposed roles that central Government will retain.
	the portfolio of investment tools that are proposed for Communities England;
	the new agency's place making role; explaining how Communities England will tailor its interventions to the needs of communities and seeking views on how it should work with local partners, including the private sector, to create vibrant and economically sustainable places;
	proposals for the future regulation of social housing in response to Professor Cave; ensuring that the system better protects and empowers tenants, works better with central and local government and reduces unnecessary burdens.
	the proposed accountability of the new organisation to Ministers and local communities, and how it will report its outcomes;
	work that is already being undertaken to prepare the way for the establishment of Communities England; and
	next steps required to make Communities England a reality.
	I am also today publishing a consultation paper, "Tenant Empowerment", outlining proposals to increase empowerment of social housing tenants.
	It includes the following for delivering a strengthened role for tenant voice:
	A draft Statutory Instrument to simplify the Housing (Right to Manage) Regulations 1994 for local authority tenants to make it easier for those who wish to trigger the process of developing tenant management with their local authority. This follows a commitment in the local government White Paper: "Strong and Prosperous Communities" to review these regulations.
	a proposal to promote a voluntary tenant management process for all social housing tenants and landlords.
	opportunity to comment on how tenant management organisations may extend their role to wider neighbourhood services.
	a proposal to form a national tenant organisation.
	Consultation on options for tenant led/tenant owned ALMOs.
	Both documents are available in the Libraries of both Houses can be accessed via the Communities and Local Government website:
	"Delivering Housing and Regeneration: Communities England and the Future of Social Housing Regeneration" (consultation paper) at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1511392
	"Tenant Empowerment"—A consultation paper at: http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1511393

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Veterinary Laboratories Agency

Ben Bradshaw: The 2006-07 annual report and accounts for the Central Science Laboratory will be laid before Parliament today.
	Copies will be available in the Libraries of the House.

Local Government (National Parks)

Barry Gardiner: On 27 March my hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government announced that 16 proposals for unitary local government were proceeding to stakeholder consultation, 27 March 2007, Official Report, column 71WS. That consultation runs until 22 June.
	Eight of those proposals relate to local authorities which lie within, or partly within, a national park, and may thus have implications for the appointments which local authorities make to national park authorities.
	At present, local authority appointees make up a majority of the members on each national park authority but those appointments are shared between a number of different local authorities. In the event that all or most of those local authorities were replaced by a single unitary, there would be a significant concentration of appointments—under some permutations a single unitary authority would be able to appoint 12 out of the 22 members on a national park authority (at present no single local authority appoints more than six members).
	The Government think that such a concentration of appointments is undesirable. National park authorities have been independent bodies since 1997 and I believe their independent status has helped them to deliver the national park purposes and to meet both local and national needs. That independence might be threatened—or might seem to be threatened—if a single local authority appointed too high a proportion of their members.
	Practically I am also conscious that a new unitary local authority, given its total number of members and the many responsibilities upon it, may have difficulty in finding sufficient members who were able to devote the necessary time to serving on a national park authority .
	For those reasons I have decided that where unitary local government might lead to a single local authority appointing eight or more members on to a national park authority, I shall want to take action in advance to ensure the independence of that authority. If such circumstances arise, I intend to review the membership of each affected national park authority with a view to reducing the number of its local authority appointees.
	Where I conclude that it is indeed appropriate to reduce the number of principal local authority seats on any national park authority, I shall also want to reflect on whether that should be allowed to feed through into a smaller overall size of authority or whether the number of 'other' seats—for example, those appointed by DEFRA—should be expanded so as to maintain the same overall size.
	If I do conclude that it would be appropriate to add some extra seats within the 'other' category—for example, those appointed by DEFRA—I would envisage using those new seats to recruit particular qualities that are either under-represented at present or might become so following a reduction in local authority members.
	By this mechanism one might aim to ensure, for example, that there was always a minimum number of members with strong local links, or with knowledge of youth issues, or with knowledge of the regional layer of government.
	The potential changes I have described could all be achieved through secondary legislation, following the amendments to the 1995 Environment Act which were introduced by section 61 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006.
	If, having reviewed the membership of individual national park authorities, I do in fact conclude that changes in membership are desirable, I shall of course undertake a full public consultation on my precise proposals before laying the necessary statutory instrument before Parliament : I am in any case required by the Environment Act 1995 (schedule 7 paragraph 2 (3)) to consult the local authority (ies) with land in a national park before making any changes to the local authority membership of that national park authority.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Independent Monitor for Entry Clearance Refusals with Limited Right of Appeal

Margaret Beckett: I have today placed in the library a copy of the report by Mrs. Linda Costelloe Baker, the Independent Monitor for Entry Clearance Refusals with Limited Rights of Appeal, covering the period 1 January to 30 September 2006. A copy is also available on the UKvisas website at: www.ukvisas.co.uk together with UKvisas' response to the monitor's recommendations.
	I welcome Mrs. Costelloe Baker's constructive and positive report, which is based on her detailed review of 1,117 cases out of the 2.1 million handled by UKvisas during the period 1 January to 30 September 2006. Mrs. Costelloe Baker notes a significant improvement in the quality of UKvisas' work as it began to focus more firmly on balance and customer service.
	Mrs. Costelloe Baker is satisfied that 90 per cent. of refusal decisions in her sample were reasonable. This is a rise of 3.7 per cent. over the 2005 sample. The report contains a number of practical recommendations to UKvisas in regard to the quality of its decision making, customer service and complaint handling. UKvisas intends to make use of these recommendations to make further improvements to its business performance and customer service delivery.
	I wish to express my thanks to Mrs. Costelloe Baker for her hard work in completing this, her second report as Independent Monitor for Entry Clearance Refusals with Limited Rights of Appeal. Her next report will cover the period from October 2006 to March 2007 and will be published in autumn 2007.

HEALTH

NHS Choices Information Service

Andy Burnham: The Government have today launched the NHS Choices information service.
	The NHS Choices website will provide the public with information about conditions, treatments and services available from the NHS, comparative data on the quality of services and information on healthy lifestyle options. Patients will also have the opportunity to provide comment on their experiences of NHS services. Potential patients can view these comments as part of their own decision-making about health and health services. Over time, NHS Choices will build into a comprehensive information service that covers a wide range of health and health service issues.
	The address for the NHS Choices website is: www.nhs.uk.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Police Authority Capital Grant

Tony McNulty: I am pleased to be able to announce today that a further £25 million of capital is now available for distribution to police authorities for 2007-08. A breakdown of the allocation of this additional money is shown in the table attached.
	As a consequence of this additional money, the total amount of capital grant allocated to police authorities in 2007-08 will be £220 million, the same figure as in 2006-07.
	Home Office officials are writing to police authorities and forces to inform them of this additional grant.
	
		
			 Police Capital Allocations 2007-08 
			 Force Allocation as at May 2007 (inc SCE) Extra Allocation Total Revised Allocation 
			  £m £m £m 
			 Avon and Somerset Police Authority 4.266 0.554 4.820 
			 Bedfordshire Police Authority 1.788 0.221 2.009 
			 Cambridgeshire Police Authority 2.147 0.270 2.417 
			 Cheshire Police Authority 2.735 0.374 3.109 
			 City of London 1.552 0.190 1.742 
			 Cleveland Police Authority 2.200 0.273 2.473 
			 Cumbria Police Authority 1.556 0.192 1.748 
			 Derbyshire Police Authority 2.649 0.344 2.993 
			 Devon and Cornwall Police Authority 4.703 0.578 5.281 
			 Dorset Police Authority 1.751 0.216 1.967 
			 Durham Police Authority 2.118 0.265 2.383 
			 Dyfed-Powys Police Authority 1.352 0.171 1.523 
			 Essex Police Authority 3.951 0.549 4.500 
			 Gloucestershire Police Authority 1.575 0.196 1.771 
			 Greater Manchester Police Authority 9.912 1.267 11.179 
			 Gwent Police Authority 1.920 0.236 2.156 
			 Hampshire Police Authority 4.900 0.657 5.557 
			 Hertfordshire Police Authority 2.452 0.385 2.837 
			 Humberside Police Authority 2.981 0.369 3.350 
			 Kent Police Authority 4.536 0.600 5.136 
			 Lancashire Police Authority 4.675 0.594 5.269 
			 Leicestershire Police Authority 2.904 0.358 3.262 
			 Lincolnshire Police Authority 1.649 0.206 1.855 
			 Merseyside Police Authority 5.823 0.720 6.543 
			 Metropolitan Police Authority 51.525 6.552 58.077 
			 Norfolk Police Authority 2.270 0.286 2.556 
			 North Wales Police Authority 1.960 0.254 2.214 
			 North Yorkshire Police Authority 1.819 0.249 2.068 
			 Northamptonshire Police Authority 1.798 0.235 2.033 
			 Northumbria Police Authority 5.379 0.703 6.082 
			 Nottinghamshire Police Authority 3.161 0.407 3.568 
			 South Wales Police Authority 4.167 0.513 4.680 
			 South Yorkshire Police Authority 4.585 0.564 5.149 
			 Staffordshire Police Authority 2.913 0.358 3.271 
			 Suffolk Police Authority 1.867 0.231 2.098 
			 Surrey Police Authority 2.547 0.384 2.931 
			 Sussex Police Authority 3.824 0.530 4.354 
			 Thames Valley Police Authority 6.268 0.789 7.057 
			 Warwickshire Police Authority 1.751 0.260 2.011 
			 West Mercia Police Authority 3.109 0.384 3.493 
			 West Midlands Police Authority 10.517 1.344 11.861 
			 West Yorkshire Police Authority 7.717 0.959 8.676 
			 Wiltshire Police Authority 1.728 0.213 1.941 
			 Total 195.000 25.000 220.000 
			 NB In line with the revenue grant increase in 2006-07, the capital grant  announced in early 2006 was calculated as a flat rate reduction for all (the  2005-06 total was 210 million). The £25 million uplifts has been applied  similarly.  Allocations include Supported Capital Expenditure (Revenue). The  £25 million grant increases have been applied to police grant (as they would  if full allocation had been possible early in 2006) not to Supported Capital  Expenditure (Revenue).

Proceeds of Crime Act

Vernon Coaker: I am pleased to announce that the fifth annual report of the appointed person under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 has been laid before Parliament today. The appointed person is an independent person who scrutinises the use of the search power introduced to support the measures in the Act to seize and forfeit criminal cash.
	The report gives the appointed person's opinion as to the circumstances and manner in which the search powers conferred by the Act are being exercised. I am pleased that the appointed person, Andrew Clarke, has expressed satisfaction with the operation of the search power and has found that there is nothing to suggest that the procedures are not being followed in accordance with the Act.
	From 1 April 2006 to the end of March 2007 over £47 million in cash was seized by police and HM Revenue and Customs officers under powers in the Act. These sums are subject to forfeiture in the magistrates court. These powers are a valuable tool in the fight against crime and the report shows that the way they are used has been, and will continue to be, closely monitored.

TRANSPORT

Gatwick Express and Southern Franchises

Tom Harris: On 17 April 2007, Official Report, column 6WS, I informed the House that the Gatwick Express franchise was to be ended and integrated into the existing Southern franchise, as part of the Department's plans to increase capacity. The Department for Transport has now concluded negotiations with Southern on the implementation of these changes and I would like to take this opportunity to inform the House of the progress that has been made.
	The Department has now given 12 months' notice to National Express, operators of the existing Gatwick Express, and the franchise will end on 22 June 2008. From this date, the Gatwick Express will become part of the Southern franchise operated by Govia.
	The House will be aware that the Gatwick Express is a premium-paying franchise, while the Southern franchise is subsidised by the Government. In amalgamating these two franchises, the Department has secured a financial agreement that is at least as favourable to the Government as the current arrangements. The new agreement also secures extra peak capacity into London and a new hourly direct service between Brighton and Southampton, which Southern will introduce in December 2007.
	As announced in my previous statement to the House, these changes will include a new-style Gatwick Express service to begin operation in December 2008. The service will retain the current frequency, branding and non-stop service between Gatwick airport and London Victoria. However, at the busiest times of day the service will extend to Brighton. This will double the number of express trains between Brighton and London Victoria in the high peak.
	The combined Southern franchise will now end three months earlier, in September 2009. This will ensure the winner of the franchise competition is in place before implementing major changes to their south London timetable in December 2009. This change will minimise the risk of disruption to passengers.